On Tuesday March 22, Karen Tse, founder International Bridges of Justice spoke in Hendrix Chapel as a part of the University Lecture series about her experiences of legal battle all over the world. International Bridges of Justice (IBJ) is a group that fights for basic human rights all over the world. Foremost, they strive to guarantee all people the protection from torture and right to competent legal representation.
In her presentation, Karen Tse told many touching stories of her experiences. One of the most touching was about a four year old boy in a Cambodian jail that she met when visiting a jail in the country. The boy was born in the prison of a woman sentenced to prison for stealing two diapers. As the boy was seen as innocent by the guards, they enjoyed his presence and company in the jail. In addition, he was allowed to squeeze through the bars and given free roam of the prison. He would visit all of the other prisoners and give them the only thing he could offer them. His pinky. The boy held his pinky out to the people in prison and allowed them to grab it. Karen said that for prisoners that lived in cells with very little light, the boy was the highlight of their day. Karen told the story as a metaphor of hope. She explained that if everyone offered the things they had to others, the world could be much improved. Even if they could only offer their little finger.
At the end of her speech, Karen led the audience in a song. She explained that the song was sung by many attorneys all over the world to inspire courage when faced by the adversity of fighting for human rights against federal governments.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSHgmSPGVzo&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
Karen Tse is a wonderful example of the power of storytelling. Her ability to take her own experiences and share them in such an effective manner is truly inspiring. Her experiences, goals and hopes are inspiring in themselves. When told through such inspiring anecdotes, their meaning is amplified and resonates especially with the audience. For more information about Karen and her cause visit http://www.ibj.org/
